The Dark Calling (The Arcana Chronicles #5)(30)

Joules spotlighted a bridge. Then a burned-out car. “You teleported over?”

“Yes. The plains in Africa had little protection from the Flash. I knew our only shot at survival was to find the mysterious Death. But I’d been to the United States just once, for a tech seminar in Washington, DC.”

I said, “And you can only teleport to places you’ve been.”

“Precisely. I can ghost anytime—”

“Ghost?” Each Arcana seemed to have his or her own lingo. The glowing markings on my skin were glyphs. Vines and trees were my soldiers.

“Make myself and other objects intangible, walking through walls and such.”

Joules said, “Or exploding bears. Too grand, that was.”

Kentarch shrugged modestly. “But teleportation must have an endpoint. Though we had no idea what we would find on a different continent, I gathered as much strength as I could, then we took a leap of faith.”

Joules murmured, “Jumping off into nothing.”

I added, “With no wings.” The Tower and I shared a look. Both imagining Gabriel’s leap?

Kentarch nodded. “We materialized to Washington. Barely. Long distances and great weights are equally difficult to teleport or ghost.” So what had ghosting this ginormous truck done to him tonight? “Once we arrived, finding enough fuel and water for the trip from DC to the mountains proved nearly impossible. Then I got separated from Issa. She must have been taken from me.”

Joules said, “Seems to me that no one could take a damned thing from you.”

Kentarch merely stared out at the road. Lost in memories?

I nudged him. “What happened?”

He blinked. “Keeping her safe from Bagmen and marauders as I sourced strained the limits of my ability. Finally I took her to an empty penthouse. I cleared the building of threats, then teleported debris to block the stairwell—after all, we’d never need the steps. Once I felt she was protected in her refuge above the city, I went farther afield for supplies. Water was our most pressing concern back then. One day, I located a well. I returned to her, intending to celebrate. But she was gone.”

“Who could have gotten to her?” I asked.

“That’s what has tormented me. Who? I’ve questioned survivors for months but have hit a true dead end.”

“Maybe your old lady dumped you.” Prickly, prickly Joules.

“Never. And even if she had decided to leave me, how could she have? My impenetrable barricade remained in place.”

“It sounds like a magic trick,” I said, reminded of Finn. My God, I was going to miss him. Even during the apocalypse, he’d retained his happy-go-lucky attitude. His words drifted through my mind: I’ve never been more stoked about life than I have been over the last two weeks.

They’d literally been his last two weeks. At Fort Arcana, he’d told me he was convinced he would die young, that he’d made peace with it. He’d thought we all should . . . .

Kentarch tapped the GPS map to zoom in on our current location; then he turned onto a new road. “There was a military force that mobilized not far outside the city. Maybe a helicopter landed on the roof and forced her away at gunpoint.” More to himself, he said, “Though I blocked the roof access as well. Perhaps they rappelled.” Shaking his head hard, he said, “Not knowing has all but maddened me.”

“If anyone can find her, it’ll be Lark,” I said, hastily adding, “once Paul is defeated and she’s fully recovered. So our first step is Circe.”

As the game wanted, we were following a MacGuffin, which meant we would surely cross paths with other Arcana.

But would we find Circe—before Richter found us?





13





“Stop the truck!” I cried. We were a few hours into our drive, and Joules had just spotlighted a legless Bagger eeling its way across the road up ahead. “I need to get close to it.”

Kentarch barely let off the gas. “Pardon? I always run them over.”

I quickly told him about the Sol and Empress shit show, relaying how the Sun had betrayed me but ultimately redeemed himself. And how we’d communicated through his Baggers.

The Chariot looked disbelieving. About which part? “If he can command Bagmen, why allow them to harm humans?”

“He can’t command all of them at one time. No more than Circe can affect all bodies of water or Lark all creatures. We wouldn’t blame Fauna for every animal attack.”

“But the Sun Card did control the Baggers who fed on your blood. How were you able to forgive him for that?”

“I’ve also had to do things I hope can be forgiven by others, and I believe in karma.” Kentarch still hadn’t made up his mind about me, and that was okay—as long as he pulled over. “Look, Sol’s got eyes everywhere. We can ask him to search for Issa.”

The Chariot slammed on the brakes, maneuvering the truck onto the shoulder. He jammed the gearshift into park. Off went the engine. With a knife at the ready, he exited the cab.

The night was freezing, snow blowing inside.

Joules opened his door and stepped down as well. Lightning flared above him in the low cloud deck.

With all that electricity about us, I’d thought the Tower would get stronger. Even he’d admitted, “Those bolts are calling my name. I’d be unstoppable if I could eat.” Still, he’d already recovered enough to produce a javelin for this foray.